Justgail's Bloghttps://justgail.wordpress.com
Just another sewing/needlework/knitting/crochet blog.Sat, 11 Aug 2018 20:02:44 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://s0.wp.com/i/buttonw-com.pngJustgail's Bloghttps://justgail.wordpress.com
An Apology to My Sergerhttps://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/11/an-apology-to-my-serger/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/11/an-apology-to-my-serger/#respondSat, 11 Aug 2018 19:53:11 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=514You’ve been a good serger for 25(?) years. Even though you’ve sat idle for years at a time while my sewing languished, you came back to life after a bit of oil and a new needle or two, ready to go. You still make me nervous though. Not so much that I fear breaking you, but I know how fast you can chew through fabric. Not a bad thing, if I can keep track of where the fabric is. Which sometimes is not easy. However when you loved the rayon-spandex knit I fed you recently, and then suddenly you hated the poly-spandex part way through this top, I used foul language, first at the fabric, then you. And I’ve been sulking for a couple of weeks over your behaviour. It couldn’t be the blade I thought, not so suddenly. Wouldn’t that cause problems gradually? Looking closer, tiny strands of fabric were wedging between blade and chassis, and hanging up. Could it be?

Then I thought about how old you are, and that you have the original cutting blade, and thought about all the new needles you’ve gotten. I replaced your blade and held my breath as I tried a scrap bit of fabric. Where you had been able to get only a couple of inches sewn before turning to crap, you now went almost a foot without issue. I put the top under your foot, stomped on the gas, and you did the full sleeve and bodice seam in one pass. Now to redo the seam that turned to a puckered mess due to my not sitting back to think clearly.

I’m sorry I blamed you. You did not deserve such foul thoughts. A new spare blade is on my shopping list. Maybe as old as you are, I should get a couple. At least I hope they are still available.

For anyone who might be reading and wondering, she’s a White 734DW. Early 90s vintage, 4 threads, no bells, whistles, plastic (except the case) or computers. Just solid and reliable service.

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/11/an-apology-to-my-serger/feed/0justgailJust a quick update….https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/04/just-a-quick-update/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/04/just-a-quick-update/#respondSat, 04 Aug 2018 14:05:15 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=203This is more of a post just so I don’t get too far out of habit on this again. Not much of interest to the sewing/quilting world is included.

No progress on quilts has been made. I did get 2 more tops cut out from Vogue 9057, view B. The plan is that these will go under the 2 tank top versions of the same view, with the hem slanted the other direction. I decided to use the serger, but it appears to have decided it doesn’t like poly-spandex nearly as well as it likes rayon-spandex knits. With the poly-spandex, a thread of fabric works between the knife and case and hangs up. Time for a new knife in the serger? So, it will be back to the sewing machine to finish them. Oh, and a mending project – DH’s favourite hat for lawn mowing. I think no more mending on it as the fabric is becoming sun rotted.

Estate work has been taking up most of my off-work time and energy – the house is for sale, and offer accepted. Sure hope all goes OK for the rest of the deal. Now to get what remains out and to auction. The car is for sale, people are coming this afternoon to look at it. If that doesn’t go through, it’s time to list it. Still lots of paperwork to take care of and file, and thinking to do. Work has been a real pisser lately, so making phone calls when people you need to talk to are in the office is a trick. And it has been even more of a trick to be there when they call back.

If anyone ever asks you to be a trustee or executor, think very hard before saying yes. And if you do say yes, do NOT feel bad about asking for compensation. Rounding up paperwork, phone calls, emails, letters, selling items, it all adds up to quite a chunk of time, and possibly expenses for stamps, long distance, etc.

And a final word of advice – when moving items down stairs, make sure that next step is the one you think it is. No serious damage done, just my ego, bruises, a couple of dings in the wall, and some wood that needs glue. Sigh.

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/08/04/just-a-quick-update/feed/0justgailWhat’s been going on….https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/whats-been-going-on/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/whats-been-going-on/#respondFri, 18 May 2018 20:47:43 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=507Sigh. I just don’t seem to be doing so well on blogging on a regular basis. Again.

After Christmas, Dad started another decline, which got very much worse in the middle of February when we put him into hospice care, and he passed away the end of February, at the age of 92.He’d been mentally ready to go for a long time, and was rather upset that his body had its own schedule.Dad missed Mom terribly ever since she passed away 4 years ago.He never wanted to end up laying in a bed and not able to get up.At least it lasted “only” a bit over a week.Still far too long for someone who was till climbing up into dryer bins and driving around the fields in the Gator until a couple years ago.Estate paperwork took up a big chunk of time for a few weeks, right now, it’s sort of a lull. For a bit, it’s mostly just keeping the bills paid and thinking about the future.

A couple of months ago, I deliberately and totally ignored cleaning for a weekend and worked on the butterfly quilt blocks Mom started when I was little and finished about 15 years ago.I got sashing between the blocks done.I did the same another weekend and did the borders and pieced the backing.I had just a touch over 7 yards of backing fabric and ended up with 1/4 yard left over.Whew!Now to get some practice in on the HandiQuilter and get it quilted.Or back to some more QOV tops to make up?The group I had joined that had a monthly get-together that ran into evenings….well, the group is still going on, but ends at 5:00 now.The leader says call her any time to come over and check out the fabrics, but well, somehow that just isn’t working out for me.I’m not saying I won’t renew membership, just doing a bit of selfish whining. Here’s a shot on the dress form –

Mom’s applique & embroidered butterfly blocks.

And here’s the backing, which I found at Joann –

backing fabric for butterfly quilt

I found some nice rayon-spandex knits at Jo-Ann fabrics a few weeks ago.That was a nice surprise – I usually apparel fabrics that I like the color & design at Jo-Ann are polyester.I made up 1 Vogue 7957 view A and have have 6 more cuts washed and on the table ready to become more Vogue 9057 view A and maybe view B.And based on the top I made, I’ll have enough to make tank tops or other sleeveless tops as well.It may sound odd, but I really need to wear sleeves at work, and often at stores and at home.The air conditioning is just too cold in my opinion.I reeeeally need new tops – a few of my blouses and tops have given up the ghost.Not only were the edges frayed terribly, but the fabric wore thin in a few spots and shredded.They’ve lasted at least 10 years, so no complaints on that part.It maybe boring reading for anyone who stops by to read, but right now for garment sewing, I’m going for getting things sewn, instead of taking out a new pattern and figuring out what adjustments and how to make them. Here’s the completed top, and the rest of the fabrics, patiently waiting –

Vogue 9057, with the neckline narrowed a bit

the next 6 fabrics for tops

I have a closet full, but not much to wear.Seriously, most of what’s in there no longer fits Maybe it’s time to uncover the treadmill or start running outside again, along with more closely watching what and how much I eat.I fear I may have become a stress eater in the last couple of years.Why, oh why, couldn’t I have become a stress sewer, needleworker or knitter/crocheter at night?!

There’s a chance of a rainy Sunday this weekend, maybe I’ll get another top done.

Thanks for stopping by…

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/whats-been-going-on/feed/0justgailLong Overdue Updatehttps://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/12/29/long-overdue-update/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/12/29/long-overdue-update/#respondFri, 29 Dec 2017 23:25:43 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=498Well.I didn’t mean to be so long between posts.It’s been a case of “life happens” with Dad.He’s 92 and was doing OK up until September.Since then, I’ve been at his house every Sunday afternoon and one doctor appointment during the week.At least we thought he was doing OK, but now that I’ve had a chance to go through this years paperwork, something had been starting in June.We moved him to assisted living the end of November, it should have been done a year ago, given his eating (rather lack of) situation.He just wasn’t thinking about eating.Now at least he’s getting 3 meals a day put in front of him, and he’s eating regularly.

This is the only sewing from scratch I’ve done since September – QOV #7 for me.It’s from a kit from the QOV group I go to.All was going well until I sewed the last seam of the blocks.I got the wrong side of the blocks sewn together.The blue triangles were supposed to be on the outer corners of the blocks.It sat at this point for 3 months, while I kept debating if I should take off that right column of half blocks off and move it to the left side.I left it as it was, taking the “done better than perfect” route.I just got the border done the day after Christmas and it’s now to the group organizer for quilting and binding.

QOV #7, ready for quilting & binding

Otherwise, sewing has been altering and mending, but the pile is gone! I know, I should take photos of these mending jobs. But really, does anyone have much interest? It’s so much more fun to look at from-scratch sewn garments and quilts.

Dad was having issues with his pants.For some reason thought his jeans were “not nice enough” to wear at assisted living.He’s changed over to wearing work pants (a brand that starts with D) that have a hook & eye that keeps coming unfastened when he cinches up the belt.I replaced the hook & eyes with heavy duty snaps.It turned out to be a much less bothersome job than mending jeans I’m usually whining about.The hard part was getting the old hook & eye’s unclamped.Sewing the band back down was a bit tricky, I had to watch out and sew very slowly on the bottom edge, lest I ram into a bit of zipper. In fact, when I got near that part, I turned the hand wheel by hand so I could feel if I was hitting metal zipper teeth or fabric. The Featherweight handled the job like a champ.I used it because I took it along and did all of his pants in his room at assisted living.

DS had a pair of flannel lined jeans that the front pocket frayed thru at the top and then got a rip in it from the top down the front.There were also a couple other holes that I just hand stitched around to keep them from fraying any farther in laundering.With the flannel lining, there was no way to properly patch them without ripping out side seams, and at this point, I didn’t want to do that. When done, I gave him a mild stink-eye and asked that he not leave things so long before sneaking them into the sewing room.

I had a fleece jacket that the nylon zipper separated and was no longer reliable.I replaced it with a plastic 2-way zipper after waffling on doing another zipper or going with a new placket and buttons.

I also fixed an insulated grocery bag by adding a bit of reinforcing fabric and stitching a few lines to hold it together.I’m waffling on making my own (have plenty of fabrics!) but when they cost a few dollars to buy new, is it worth my time?

DH ripped the back of a pair of jeans out where the pocket is.That will involved removing the pocket, adding a backing fabric and stitching those together and then sewing the pocket back down.

OK, back to more fun things!I bought this quilt at the flea market/antique show in Maquoketa this fall.It’s of 1940’s fabrics (I think), hand sewn, hand quilted, big enough for a full-size bed, and in lovely condition.It has no binding, just the edges folded together and whip stitched together.And it cost a grand total of $100.I’m of mixed emotions on that.I’m glad I didn’t pay more, but really, with the amount of work and fabric, it’s shameful that’s all it brought.

All hand-sewn hexagon quilt

all 4 sides follow the hexagon shape

no binding, edges turned and whip stitched

I acquired another quilt, this one I remember from my childhood.The most of the squares are bark cloth and it’s tied, not quilted.I have a doll quilt of the same fabrics.

bark cloth squares, 1940s? 1930s?

the backing goes great with the sashing on front

I’m off work until Jan. 8, a combination of holiday shutdown at work and a few vacation days.You’d think I have sewing plans made for the whole time.But I don’t – the sewing room is a pit, I have papers and photos to sort from Dad’s, a few things to clean up at Dad’s house yet (food, clean up some things, etc).I’ll be happy if I get the HandyQuilter I just got last week (haven’t touched it yet ) set up and give it some practice. Though if it remains this blasted cold, I may abandon the tentative plans to go clean out at Dad’s one day and go to a quilt shop or two I rarely get to another, and stay home and sew a couple badly needed tops.

Thanks for stopping by…

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/12/29/long-overdue-update/feed/0justgailAnother finish!https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/another-finish/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/another-finish/#respondMon, 28 Aug 2017 20:00:55 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=488I was going to get this done last weekend, but made the mistake of thinking I’d just pull the ragweed out of the asparagus.And this grass that’s going to seed.And…several hours later, one side of the bed is done.And my wrist and shoulder were not up to handling the quilt.I still have one side of the asparagus left to do.And while reading a garden blog, I realized what I should have done with the garden sections I left empty this year – flowers & herbs for butterflies and birds.Oh well, next year, unless my garden mojo returns, which I doubt it will until I retire.

asparagus bed before weeding, in the foreground is an area I did not plant this year – weedy mess! In the back left is a melon DH planted.

Asparagus bed before weeding

asparagus bed after weeding

Now to the important business –

The American Jane Merry-Go-Round hexagon quilt is done done done.The original pattern makes up at 76″ x 83″, and called for 3 jelly rolls.I added 2 columns and 1 row of hexagons and bought 1 or 2 more jelly rolls.I’m not sure why so many largish quilt patterns end up leaving only about 10-12 inches of drop, and that’s for a full size bed.It doesn’t leave much extra for blanket wars.This one was quilted at Fabric Stasher in Tipton.

After taking another look at the stash, I ended up using the yard of Kona Rich Red I had in stash and made bias binding.I had a yellow that matched, but after auditioning, I just liked the red better.And while I’ve liked pieced bindings I’ve seen others use, after pulling out the leftovers, I, well.chickened out, is the best way to put it, I guess.The miters came out OK, but I totally spaced clipping the backing, so it has a few puckers at the inside miters.And when it came time to fold the binding to the back, I started to baste the corners.Then I realized that if I did a neat job of it, no only would it save going back and restitching if, oh who am I kidding, WHEN I missed catching the back, I would not have to go back and restitch the corners, and I would not have to go back and remove the basting.As it was, I had a few spots where the binding didn’t get stitched.Pro tip – when making your continuous bias binding, double and triple check which side of diamond you are making your cuts on.After flipping and turning so much, I ended up cutting 2 strips on straight grain side, not the bias side.OOPS!Fortunately I had a larger piece to be cutting from than was needed, so I still ended up with plenty to spare.

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/another-finish/feed/0justgailA quilt finish for me!https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/a-quilt-finish-for-me/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/a-quilt-finish-for-me/#respondMon, 14 Aug 2017 19:33:49 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=481Finally, a long term project is done. Is it perfectly done? Oh heck no, I had many sessions where I told myself “done is better than perfect”.

This quilt is very loosely based on a quilt I saw in late 1990s perhaps.It was gold & black, with square quarter-log cabins and a border print sashing between the blocks.It was the use of border print sashing that really caught my eye.I saw this rose fabric in Cottage Rose quilt shop in Marion, Iowa (no longer a physical store presence), loved it, bought it, and had no clue what to do with it, until the memory of that gold/black quilt popped in. After several rounds of thinking, drawing, using EQ, this is what I ended up with. I modified that gold/black quilt to use diamond shaped blocks, hoping it would look more like rosebuds, and used the border printonly between the columns of blocks.I only have selvedge from the dark green fabric and it’s dated 2004, sadly I don’t seem to have saved the rose print selvedges for some reason.

The quilt was quilted at Heartland Cottons in DeWitt, Iowa, has cotton batting, and ended up being 82″ wide by 94″ long.

The quilt on the bed – there are a total of 6 columns of blocks. The colors are closest to true life on the left side of the photo.

closer view of the mitered borders

Back showing the quilting pattern used – it really doesn’t show from the front

The fabric before cutting – I still have a bit left to marinate a while longer.

I’ve practiced making inside corner binding miters for the hexagon quilt.I have lots of strips, full and partial, left from the jelly rolls and hope to use them for the binding, and not need to make bias binding. The tutorials I’ve looked at use straight grain binding. It’s not that making binding is difficult, but amazingly, I don’t see anything in the stash that would go with the quilt fabric.I suspect my quilt fabric buying may follow my garment fabric buying – too much “ooh pretty!” resulting in not a lot that really goes together.I have colors that work but style-wise they are not right to my eye. Maybe I need to invest in some more solids or blenders? Other than reds, whites, and blues that I usually look at for QOV tops, I don’t seem to have a lot of “go with anything” fabrics.

Thanks for stopping by…

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/a-quilt-finish-for-me/feed/0justgailQOV top #6 finishedhttps://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/30/qov-top-6-finished/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/30/qov-top-6-finished/#respondSun, 30 Jul 2017 22:38:02 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=475and ready to be turned in for quilting and binding. In real life, the white isn’t quite so white, i has red stars on it. I’m always puzzled by how different many quilts look in person, vs. how the camera sees them.

QOV top #6

I haven’t given the hexagon quilt any thought about the binding, so nothing to report on that one. Saturday, other quilt top I had quilted was done and I picked it up. This one will probably be done first, as it’s all straight sides and I have fabric on hand for the binding. I keep thinking I should take apart the butterfly quilt top Mom made and start adding the sashing to make it a bit bigger for use on a bed. But I really don’t need another unfinished project, do I? No much garment sewing to report on, no fabulous fabric or pattern purchases either. In fact, I had a couple fabrics and patterns in hand, walked around the store and put them back. Although I did splurge on Vogue 1355 – I missed getting to Joann when they were on sale, and when I looked in the drawer to check if I really wanted it, they had the pink side up on the tag. And I am working on a list of fabrics to keep an eye out for, so I don’t keep ending up with fabrics that don’t work with much else in the wardrobe. Checking if it goes with denim just hasn’t worked out for me.

Oh, and now for a WTH?! comment – on my weekly run at Wmart, I was going to pick up some wooden hangers to put the quilts on while waiting for their binding. They had wood hangers, but they appeared to be UNFINISHED?! I mean the wood was nice and smooth, but there was no finish on them to keep wood acids from leaching out. And yes, at my current work rate, I can easily see quilts hanging on them long enough to be damaged. Oh, another mini rant – I bought cellular blinds at Home Depot to replace ratty roller shades and I could NOT get the blinds snapped into the brackets. There is nothing to keep the bracket from sliding off the front of the header while you are trying to shove up on the back to snap into the clamp. Those things are going back!!

Any suggestions for where to buy wood hangers or cellular blinds?

Thanks for stopping by…

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/30/qov-top-6-finished/feed/0justgailQOV #6 Progresshttps://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/16/qov-6-progress/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/16/qov-6-progress/#commentsSun, 16 Jul 2017 22:43:20 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=446Here’s QOV #6, the blocks are sewn, but not to each other yet. I’m debating whether to put sashing between them, or not. I kind of like the blue. This particular red is too dark, maybe lighter red? But no sashing and just a border to bring it to size means it will be finished and turned in for quilting faster.

QOV #6, the blue is good, the red is too dark.

I added a bit of pool noodle to the controller lever on the Necchi, it seems to help a bit, as does remembering to take frequent breaks and walk around. I think rather than putting the controller on the floor, I’m going to get a couple of 2x4s and put under the cabinet. This will allow me to pull the chair up closer.

The American Jane hexagon quilt is back from the quilters, now to get the binding on. I was going to use leftover strips for the binding, but the quilter suggested using bias binding because of all the mitering I’ll be doing on the sides. I have not checked what I have in the stash, hopefully there’s something that would work and that I have enough of.

I think I mentioned the LauraStar ironing board a while back. I got it at an estate sale, a few years ago and never really had a place to set it up. A couple months ago, I got it out, read instructions, and plugged it it. I also found that the fill bottle and drain pan were missing. I got new bottle and tray and tried it out The steamer heats up, the fan works, but there’s no heat or steam on the iron, and a bit of water came out the drain plug. I hope the leak is because I didn’t have it tight enough. But the no heat or steam out the iron is disappointing. If I can’t figure it out, I’m wondering if there’s a way to use the fan part with my regular iron. It might mean having to hit a separate button, but it could be workable.

Thanks for stopping by…

]]>https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/16/qov-6-progress/feed/2justgailQOV #6 with sashing optionsJune Shop Hop & Cute Troublehttps://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/june-shop-hop-cute-trouble/
https://justgail.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/june-shop-hop-cute-trouble/#respondSat, 08 Jul 2017 01:52:22 +0000http://justgail.wordpress.com/?p=435I hope all had a good July 4th.And a good Canada Day for anyone reading from up there.

I started writing this June 18th, and never got it posted, so if it rambles and wanders about, apologies.I’ve been using vacation days this week.As usual, way too much on the to-do list, not enough done.

I’ve started QOV #6 this week, another kit from the group.I think I need to move the controller on the Necchi from the cabinet to the floor.After spending an entire day sewing, my sciatic nerve was giving me fits for the next 2 days.Or just not sew all day?I got the blocks about 2/3 of the way assembled, and need to press before continuing to finish them.Then there’s putting them all together, border, etc.

I finished the dresser drawers.I bought at an estate sale a couple months ago.I got the wood and cut new bottoms and sides a few weeks ago.Then started to use the hand-held rotary tool to cut a groove in one side.It’s slow, saw dusty and noisy work!So I rethought the plan.I put the old sides in a plastic bag with wet paper towels and clamped between 2x4s.When I checked them the next day, they were totally soft and flexible, maybe too much so?After waiting a few days to let them dry, came to the conclusion that was not going to work.The veneer fell off, they got more cracks, etc.So back to the Ryobi again.While looking for the other bits I thought I had (never did find those), I did find a router attachment for it! WOOOT!!It was a royal pain to adjust, and using it was…interesting,But I figured it out, didn’t break the drawer sides, router, put an eye out, or cause and loss of blood.Last weekend, I got the drawers reassembled and this week, the drawer insides were given a coat of water based polyurethane, and the drawer glides waxed.Yesterday was spent moving my needlework fabrics from plastic drawers to the “new” dresser, the flosses from a sturdier dresser to the plastic drawers, organizing them by type as I went,Today the art supplies were consolidated to the sturdier dresser, and I went through and organized the bead & jewelry supplies.I did manage to put some things in a bag to take to thrift shop, not nearly as much as I should have though.

June Shop Hopping –

On June 2nd, I did go to the quilt shops in Muscatine and West Branch & a quilt show in Iowa City.The Little Red Hen in Muscatine is dangerous to my finances!I’m sort of glad I don’t get there often.They have a lot of Civil War type fabrics, and many of the reds, blues and near-white fabrics work well in QOV quilts.They also have a lot of wools.I had trouble getting to Neal’s downtown.I have found a town I dislike driving in as much as Iowa City.Muscatine – PLEASE put in bigger and more street signs!!!Neal’s is a nice little shop, more general and kids fabrics, if memory serves correctly.But I don’t know that I will go back, not a lot of what I look for, and parking is crap, especially when trucks park in the alley and block access to the parking spots.

Cotton Creek Mill in West Branch is a nice bright shop and I found a few more fabrics.They have a nice selection of Civil War and primitive stye fabrics and more modern ones.

Then on to Iowa City and the quilt show..Found the church, and parking nearby (bring LOTS of quarters or a credit card for street parking meters).After the quilt show, I missed getting hit by someone running a read light on the way to Home Ec. Workshop.Literally missed by a couple feet!!Thank you to whoever invented anti-lock brakes!Home Ec. Workshop is a nice little store in the bottom of a house, with more yarn than fabric though.If I live in IC and knitted, I’d be a regular customer, I did find a bit of cute garden and kitty fabrics to come home with me.Darn, I just thought maybe I should have taken photos of the stash additions.

Here are a couple of photos of the quilt show.Lots of lovely quilts, but with quilts shown like this, you can’t seen the full quilt and it’s really hard to get good photos. But it’s better than not seeing them at all. I’m glad it was a nice sunny day, had it been cloudy, it would have been too dark for photos.I don’t like taking quilt photos with flash – it seems to wash out a lot of quilting details.

Then on to Mt. Vernon and Helios.And I found more fabric, of course.I keep forgetting they have $35 precut quilt backings.I need to remember to look there next time I get a quilt that far.

And then home it was.I was tired, achy, and so were my finances.

Over the next few weeks, I got to Inspired To Sew (aka Pine Needles) in Cedar Rapids & Connie’s Quilt Shop in Marion, Heartland Cottons in DeWitt and Expressions in Threads in LeClaire.I was fortunate that I was able to get off work at 4:00 a couple of times, usually I’m not walking out until 5:00 when they close.At Inspired, I got a bunch of Kaffe Fasset fabrics and some others suitable for QOV quilts.At Connie’s I picked up a few more QOV suitable fat quarters.I picked up a few fat quarters at Heartland, and yet more at Expressions.If QOV fabrics is your mission, I’d recommend Connie’s, Expressions, or Little Red Hen.If Civil War repress is your mission, Connie’s and Little Red Hen.

After all this shop hopping, I was going to put a temporary halt on hobby spending, but then came the Accuquilt email on their July 4th sale.Somehow the companion sets for the 6″, 8″, and 9″ Qubes ended up on my doorstep.I’d been pondering buying the 8″ & 9″ companion sets, to go with the Qubes I have, but could not pass on those savings for the 6″ companion set also, even though I don’t have the 6″ Qube, that’s next on my purchase list.If I had a larger cutter, the 12″ companion set would also have shown up on my doorstep.So NOW the temporary halt on hobby buying begins!At least until the end of July when Heartland has their 5th Saturday sale.

Here’s a shot of Cute Trouble.The beginning of June, I looked out and saw these guys perched on a piece of stumpthat’s a planter looking at our cat on the bench. I tried to get photos, but it was too dark. No sign of momma, and they were small enough they had no clue what to do with the cat food left in the bowl.Last night I saw them again, much bigger and eating cat food.It’s definitely time to empty the dishes.The stray cat will have to get here sooner for his supper.

And now a question for quilters –

I was reading a blog that I use to reward myself to slogging through another work week and this post

got me thinking – why not take a page from garment sewers and use a very light weight fusible interfacing on the back of the blocks’ bias edges as they are made?Or on what will be the bias block edge as the pieces are cut?Sort of like when we stabilize the pocket edges on pants or necklines right after cutting, so they don’t have a chance to stretch out.

The 2 quilts are still at the machine quilters. Wait – I know I showed the American Jane last post, did I ever show the pink/red/green “rose” quilt top? Maybe not, I can’t even find any photos of it, odd, I could swear I took some. They probably will not be done until end of the month.Or did I tell the one quilter end of July would be fine?Oh well, they are not gifts, and there is no need for them until winter anyway.This time of year, the machine quilters around here are kept quite busy with graduation present quilts.

QOV #3 came back from quilting & I did the binding and turned it in for laundering and presentation.QOV top #4 got turned in a few weeks ago for quilting, I don’t know if I’ll get it back to do the binding or if someone else will be doing it.Here is QOV top #5, finished and turned in this week for quilting.It was another kit I bought and yet again, I ended up trimming every block.After watching some of the Accuquilt videos, noting their stressing of making sure lengthwise grain of fabric is fed into the machine, and looking at the pieces in the kit, I’m fairly sure at least part of my woes is the way fabric was fed into the machine.I know when I helped with cutting a kit or 2, I was feeding it in on the cross grain.I mean, when you take 2 squares that are the same size, and they don’t match up before stitching, it’s not my sewing!I know I still need to work on my 1/4″ seams though.And I did find a long-shank 1/4″ presser foot with a guide for the Necchi.And yeah…the 1/4″ I’ve been using (marked with several layers of painters tape on the machine) and the 1/4″ on this foot are not the same.

After getting the last quilts off the design wall, I rearranged the room.I swapped the design wall to the opposite wall, not only will the fabrics be out of the sun for fading, photos should come out a bit better also. The ironing board stayed where it’s at due to the lighting from the window, and I moved the cart with the steam press into that room.Now all the pressing/ironing equipment is in one room.Several years ago, I found a LauraStar board at an estate sale.Ever since it’s been sitting unused due to space and I was sort of afraid to plug it in.A couple weeks ago, I took it to the kitchen (GFI outlets there) and held my breath and plugged it in and…..woohoo! no circuit breakers tripped!I started reading the instructions and realized the fill bottle and drain tray must have been in another pile somewhere at the sale.I got new ones ordered and now I need to clean and fill it and give it a real tryout.I’ve just been using it for the board, not using the iron part because I could set it a bit higher than my old board – a real back-saver!

I’m off on “vacation” this week, more correctly – I’m using vacation time.As usual, my list of things to do far outpaces the time I have to do them.I have made no progress on sewing more tops, or reworking Mom’s butterfly quilt, or hand quilting the bird quilt.I just got the tomato and jalapeno pepper plants put in the garden yesterday.I have a box with radishes, romaine & 2 types of kale, planted about the first week of May that sprouted and are not growing.Not dying, not growing, just sitting there.That’s it for my garden this year, and I think that until I retire, that’s about all my garden will be.

Today, I need to fix (or at least start) drawers on a small dresser I bought at an estate sale a couple months ago.It needs 3 drawer bottoms and 2 drawer sides replaced due to moisture damage.I also got a finish to put on the drawers, not only to reduce chance of future warping, but to keep odors (very faintly mildew) from transferring to the needlework things I plan on putting in it.Or maybe I should put the beads and art supplies in it, they shouldn’t pick up much in the way of odors.

Friday, I plan on going to quilt shops in Muscatine and West Branch & a quilt show in Iowa City.We’ll see – I hate driving in Iowa CIty, the show is downtown, part of an art festival, and I have no idea on where the best chance of parking is, I’ve already dropped a huge amount of quilting fabric at a couple of sales the last couple weeks.My sciatic nerve has been acting up and…Wah!Wah!Wah!!!I’ll quilt whining now.